Google Plus Opens
Google opens Google Plus for everyone: Google Plus Hangouts goes mobile and gets an API; http://eicker.at/GooglePlusOpens
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Gerrit Eicker
Google Plus API
The Google Plus API starts with public data only: This is the start. Experiment with it; http://eicker.at/GooglePlusAPI
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Gerrit Eicker
Google: “[W]e want every one of you who builds applications to be able to include rich sharing, identity, and conversations in your app. Today, we’re taking the next step on that journey by launching the first of the Google+ APIs. … This initial API release is focused on public data only – it lets you read information that people have shared publicly on Google+. … We love the way the programmable web has evolved, so we’re using existing standards and best practices wherever we can: Our API methods are RESTful HTTP requests which return JSON responses. Our payload formats use standard syntax (e.g. PoCo for people info, ActivityStrea.ms for activities). We use OAuth 2 for secure trusted access to user data. – In addition, since most of us no longer write raw HTTP requests these days, we provide libraries for your favorite language: Java, GWT, Python, Ruby, PHP, and .NET. These libraries are all open source, so we’d love to have your feedback and help with them. … For all of you developers who have been asking for a Google+ API, this is the start. Experiment with it. Build apps on it. Give us your feedback and ideas. This is just the beginning; the Google+ platform will grow and we value your input as we move Google+ forward.”
Google Developers: “The Google+ API is the programming interface to Google+. You can use the API to integrate your app or website with Google+. This enables users to connect with each other for maximum engagement using Google+ features from within your application. … Applications are limited to a courtesy usage quota. This should provide enough access for you to preview the API and to start thinking about how you want to build your application. … Many API calls require that the user of your application grant permission to access their data. Google uses the OAuth 2.0 protocol to allow authorized applications to access user data.”
RWW: “Since the social network launched in June and put out a call for developers, this API has been hotly anticipated. Our ReadWriteHack poll found that a commanding majority of our developer readers were interested in playing with it. This summer, we laid out some ground rules about what Google would have to do to win developers’ hearts with this API, and it looks good so far, though devs only have access to public data at this point.”
TC: “A week ago, we noted the talk amongst developers that a Google+ API could be months away. The next day, we learned that Google was reaching out to ‘trusted’ developers – among them, Google Ventures-backed startups – to try out their early stab at the API. Google was not happy we found this out (and went on a witch hunt to find the leaker) – so it shouldn’t be too surprising that today they’re announcing some initial APIs for everyone to use. … [T]he main focus of Google+ is clearly on the Circles sharing concept. The API for that is probably one that everyone is really waiting for. And that one could be a ways off since it involves complex connections and tricky privacy implications. Even more important will be the write API. But again, with the Circles element, it’s complicated.”
Winer: “Google doesn’t get it – I usually don’t say this about people or companies, aware that I am that it’s often the other way around. The one saying they don’t get it is the one that don’t. In this case I am absolutely sure that Google is the one. … They should just support RSS, and forget APIs to read publicly available content. All that’s going to happen now is people are going to write apps that produce feeds from their API so they can hook into the reading tools that were written a hundred years ago, like the one Google itself has.”
Gerrit Eicker
Google: “Google+ APIs: Now With Search and More! – Last month we launched search in Google+, and now it’s available in the API. … Our first API release let you retrieve public posts. We’ve now added ways for you to see how people are publicly engaging with those posts – you can find out who reshared a post or who +1‘d a post, and you can read the comments on a post.”
Gerrit Eicker 19:18 on 20. September 2011 Permalink |
Google: “The Google+ project has been in field trial for just under 90 days, and in that time we’ve made 91 different improvements (many of which are posted here). Google+ is still in its infancy, of course, but we’re more excited than ever to bring the nuance and richness of real-life sharing to software. Today we’re releasing nine more features that get us that much closer. … In life we connect with others in all sorts of places, at all different times. And the connections you make unexpectedly are often the ones you remember the most. We think Hangouts should keep pace with how you socialize in the real-world, so today we’re launching it on the one device that’s always by your side: your mobile phone. To get started, simply find an active hangout in the Stream, and tap ‘Join’… Hangouts currently supports Android 2.3+ devices with front-facing cameras (and iOS support is coming soon). … If field trial has taught us anything about Hangouts, it’s that the community is overflowing with creative individuals. So in the wake of last week’s Google+ API launch, we’re also releasing a basic set of Hangouts APIs. If you’re a developer who wants to build new kinds of apps and games (and who-knows-what-else), then you can find more details on the Google+ platform blog. … For the past 12 weeks we’ve been in field trial, and during that time we’ve listened and learned a great deal. We’re nowhere near done, but with the improvements we’ve made so far we’re ready to move from field trial to beta, and introduce our 100th feature: open signups. This way anyone can visit google.com/+, join the project and connect with the people they care about.”
Google: “Today we’re launching the Developer Preview of the Hangouts API, another small piece of the Google+ platform. It enables you to add your own experiences to Hangouts and instantly build real-time applications, just like our first application, the built-in YouTube player. … The integration model is simple – you build a web app, register it with us, and specify who on your team can load it into their Hangout. Your app behaves like a normal web app, plus it can take part in the real-time conversation with new APIs like synchronization. Now you can create a ‘shared state’ among all instances of your app so that all of your users can be instantly notified of changes made by anyone else.”
GigaOM: “All of these integrations show that Hangouts may just be the killer feature of Google+ that helps to get users excited about using Google+ circles to get more use out of other Google services. With Hangouts becoming part of the Google+ API, this effect could even reach beyond Google’s core properties.”
RWW: “Conspicuously absent? There are still no brand pages, and Google Apps accounts still can’t use Plus. The latter is especially frustrating, since Google Docs in Hangouts will dramatically expand the possibilities of using Google Plus for work.”
TC: “First and foremost, Google+ finally has search. Yes, I know it’s hard to believe that a service built by Google launched without it, but it did. Now Google+ allows you to search for people and posts simply by using the search box at the top. Of note, you can filter results by either ‘Best of’ or ‘Most recent’. This also allows you to search the Sparks feature, which is still underdeveloped.”
TNW: “This is a welcome change to the simple, profile-only search that Google+ was using before and is only one of several big changes that Google is implementing in Google+ today. It has also made major improvements to its Hangouts service, bringing enhancements and a move to mobile devices. The Google+ service is also now available to all so anyone interested can start trying it out.”